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Animal Assisted Therapy: Fido Digs Up Your New Career

By Kate McIntyre
Learning & Life Columnist
May 21, 2007

People working in psychology, education, healthcare, social work, and counseling are discovering the benefits of introducing animals to their patients or clients. Studies suggest that interaction with animals can help children's emotional development, improve the mental health cancer patients and their caregivers, and ease the stress of families' military transfers. Interacting with animals can be therapeutic for many types of people, including children, the elderly, people seeking rehabilitation from injuries, and people suffering from mental illness.

Educational Opportunities and Training for Animal Assisted Therapists

Animal assisted therapy is such a new and exciting field that there are few formal programs of study; many professionals get involved through traditional degrees in psychology, behavioral sciences and so on. There are some certificate programs in animal assisted therapy that can complement your training in another area. Coursework in animal assisted therapy training programs includes such topics as selecting animals for therapy work, determining when animal assisted therapy might be helpful, how to conduct an animal assisted therapy session, and how to get a program started in your area. People interested in using animal assisted therapy often have their bachelor's or master's degrees in psychology, education, or behavioral science. Psychologists, teachers and social workers are already in direct contact with people who can benefit from this therapy, so transitioning into an animal assisted therapist career can be very natural for many professionals.

Picking a Therapy Animal

Therapy animals come in all shapes and sizes. Many animal assisted therapists choose to use their own dog or cat as a therapy animal. However, horses, goats, pot-bellied pigs, birds, rabbits, rats, and donkeys can all also make good therapy animals. All therapy animals should be even-tempered and non-aggressive.

If you love working with animals and helping people, animal assisted therapy could be a great career path for you. Whether you incorporate it with other types of therapy or rely on it exclusively, you will be part of a field where the research is just beginning.

Sources:

• Delta Society, "Recent Studies on How the Presence of Pets Affects People During Life Transitions"

About the Author
Kate McIntyre, a fiction writer in Portland, Oregon, holds an M.F.A. in fiction writing from Oregon State University.

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